Go Beyond Sacrament of Confirmation, Nurture Children’s Faith: Catholic Archbishop in Kenya to Parents, Guardians

He encouraged parents and guardians to remember that the Sacrament of Confirmation does not mean that children are now independent of their parents, free to do whatever they want, but rather that the bond with God and family continues.

“We need to be the fellow men of our young people to help them grow in the love of God, knowing and serving him with greatness. May God bless you for having embraced this responsibility, not of cheap love, but of costly love; not of cheap grace, but of costly grace. This, indeed, is an invitation,” the Local Ordinary of ADN said.

He went on to encourage both the parents and godparents of the candidates of the sacrament of Confirmation, as pilgrims of hope, to remain steadfast in their role of accompanying children in their journey of faith, saying, “Take up the cross. Embrace it and remember, do not give up. Do not give up.”

Noting that hope is one of the enduring gifts from God, which enables the people of God to live both in the present and in the future, he said, “Hope is like the last breath that you have with God, and that last breath will never disappoint you. So don’t lose hope.”

In his September 7 homily, the Kenyan Catholic Archbishop, who began his Episcopal Ministry in February 1996 as Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Kericho underscored the importance of the sacrament of Confirmation, which he described as “a bridge to other Sacraments.”

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“The Sacrament of Confirmation is a very important Sacrament,” he said, noting that, in reality, one should not receive the Sacrament of Marriage without first being confirmed, nor be consecrated as a Sister or Brother, nor ordained a Priest without the sacrament of Confirmation.

He emphasized the importance of adequate preparation before being conferred the Sacrament of Confirmation, saying, “Our Lord tells us again and again. He tells us very clearly that before we become disciples, we must sit down and count our cost. That’s why we learn Catechism.”

“We must know that being prepared depends on God himself. To be a disciple of Jesus Christ takes more than a rosy glow of benevolence; it requires courage, patience, generosity, and wisdom, the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit; it takes all these resources,” Archbishop Anyolo said.

Nicholas Waigwa is a Kenyan multimedia journalist and broadcast technician with a professional background in creating engaging news stories and broadcasting content across multiple media platforms. He is passionate about the media apostolate and Catholic Church communication.